Condenser with a built-in receiver

Abstract

A condenser for a refrigerant circuit including a compressor, a condenser, an expansion valve and an evaporator which are sequentially disposed is disclosed. The condenser includes a plurality of tubes having opposite first and second open ends, and a plurality of fins disposed between the plurality of tubes. First and second header pipes are fixedly disposed at the opposite ends respectively, and the open ends of the tubes are disposed in fluid communication with the interior of the header pipes. The first header pipe has an inlet which links the condenser to an external element of the circuit. The second header pipe has a first open end and a second closed end. An outlet element is disposed at the first open end of the second header pipe and links the condenser to an external element of the circuit. A pipe member is disposed in the second header. One open end of the pipe member is disposed near the closed end of the second header, and the other open end of the pipe member is disposed near the outlet. In operation, the refrigerant fluid which condenses in the condenser accumulates in an accumulating section and than flows out to the external fluid circuit from the second header exclusively through the pipe member. Since the condenser includes an accumulator section disposed therein, the need for a separate receiver element in the circuit is eliminated.